WEST MILFORD — People driving along Macopin Road have noticed that the former Huntsman Restaurant at 1745 Macopin Road is the subject of ongoing work and remodeling these days.
The West Milford Messenger stopped and met two men who were at work remodeling the building.
In May, the West Milford Township Council approved a liquor license transfer for the establishment, which will be called Country Cottage. The license had been held by Angelo M. Juliano and was transferred to Stammy, LLP.
Some historyAfter 22 years in business illness caused former general manager Mark Costanza who operated the Huntsman Restaurant there to close.
The restaurant has had many owners and businesses throughout the years and dates back to when George and Renee Bouchacourt Fox moved to West Milford in 1948 and opened a small luncheonette in the building they built and named Fox Lair.
Renee Bouchacourt Fox was a native of France and was living in Jersey City with her husband before they moved to West Milford. They had operated candy stores in Jersey City and Union City in tough times for 20 years.
Bouchacourt Fox was known in West Milford for her homemade ice cream. Not only was it available at the luncheonette but at some various small stores such as the White Birch Park stand on Macopin Road, Echo Lake. Renee made the ice cream on the porch of the building and used part of the garage for storage.
Without the summer tourist trade when fall and winter came, the ice cream business fell and then she made bisque tortoni and spumoni ice cream that was sold to Italian restaurants in North Jersey. The small local business produced 600 quarts of ice cream in the summer of 1962.
- Ann Genader